Laura Kurella is an award-winning, self-syndicated food columnist, an award-winning Food Stylist, and the author of two cookbooks: Fabulous Desserts and Fabulous Tiny Bites and beverage. Her column, Vitality Cuisine, appears each Tuesday in the
...

Laura Kurella is an award-winning, self-syndicated food columnist, an award-winning Food Stylist, and the author of two cookbooks: Fabulous Desserts and Fabulous Tiny Bites and beverage. Her column, Vitality Cuisine, appears each Tuesday in the Sturgis Journal, and her Radio Recipe show can be heard Tuesday mornings at 7:15 am at WBETFM.com Questions or comments? Contact Laura at Laurakurella@yahoo.com.

Does your cooler smell like its been filled with dead fish - or worse? There is a quick solution!

By Laura Kurella

July 20, 2013
10:46 a.m.

QUIP: Summer is a fun time and in Michigan, pretty much the only time you use a cooler. However, having a cooler sit un-used and closed up for nine months out of the year can make it stinky and a cooler that has absorbed an odor before being stored can become so smelly that it can be rendered just about un-usable.

“Is there a way to stop a cooler from stinking and what is the best way to store it come winter?”

TIP: Coolers are marvelous. They can not only hold food and drink cold – or warm- but they can also protect the surrounding area from getting damp or wet in the process. In fact, when I had young ones still in the house, I kept a cooler in my trunk year round so that it could store anything damp or wet – food, drink or otherwise (you know kids) year round. This way I was sure that nothing would seep into my trunk. I did this out of experience because one of our precious children had placed a bottle of soda in the trunk of my park avenue in the wintertime. It eventually froze, shattered and spewed - all over my trunk – its very sticky, syrupy fluids. The mess could never truly be removed from it and, whenever I opened that trunk in the summer, it would attract bees like nobody’s business!

That said, I say never put that cooler away but use will make it stink as much as being stowed can.

The best way to get rid of any cooler odors is to wash it out first with a bleach or baking soda solution. Let it air dry completely – in the sun if you can – then wad up some clean newspaper and place it inside before storing.

The same is true for a super stinky cooler. Wad up lots of clean newspaper and close it. Let it sit overnight and then remove paper. The paper will absorb the odor. It may take more than one treatment if stink is very bad. If there was meat that went south, you can also add a few plain charcoal cubes before closing lid. They too can pull the odor out of just about anything – It’s that simple!